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7 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

Chemists and Machinists; the people who wash their hands thoroughly before going to the bathroom.

True story.

On 12/3/2019 at 4:47 PM, Michael said:

Not many precision surfaces on blacksmithing gear, the vise jaws will NOT be paralel, anvils are not flat references surfaces.

Yeah. I do have another buddy who is a blacksmith, but he didn't know much about post vises when I asked him, so I ended up here. Anyway, it's real interesting to see how differently we're each inclined to solve the same problem based on our background as machinist or blacksmith.

On 12/3/2019 at 5:10 PM, ThomasPowers said:

Powered wire brush to remove the rust before gifting is a great help with making the spouse of the giftee happier. OTOH it may do just  the opposite with your spouse.

We actually already have a system in place - I use the utility room as a 'mud room', and the downstairs shower is 'mine'. It started because I was so covered in coolant and chips from work but has transitioned nicely as I've got my own shop up and running in the garage.

51 minutes ago, Kozzy said:

I would superficially clean it, lightly oil and gift it as it is.  I'd personally like to do the "fixits" myself so that I know the vise's story well.  

I'm in the same camp personally, but as a machinist it's at least partly because I don't want anyone screwing up any precision surfaces or anything. Thought I'd check to see if blacksmiths are the same way about tools.

26 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

Do not put boiled linseed oil on the, inside, bearing surfaces near the pivot bolt! Wiping down the outside is OK. (How much is also dependent on where you are at; on the sea shore I'd do a through coat, perhaps 2. Here in the desert I might not put BLO on it at all.)

As this vise is NOT made from Cast Iron what has cast iron rods have to do with it?   I would not weld especially as you probably don't have any experience welding real wrought iron rather than cast iron or mild steel or even alloy steels.

We're in Colorado, so rust isn't a huge deal. Maybe I'll leave that to him.

And you got me, I forgot all the reading I did on post vises this summer. I had assumed it was cast iron at first, then learned it wasn't, but forgot myself as I waited til now to start on it.

I'll do enough cleaning that I won't get in trouble with my mother in law for bringing it into her house, that's for sure. I'll ask my wife if she has a clue how much of this work he'd like to do himself.

Thanks guys!

I'm not into smithing but my father in law is. I stumbled across a post vise for cheap this summer, and I've been sitting on it to give to him for Christmas, since he doesn't have one in his shop. 

This vise was laying on the ground outside this guy's barn and is a little dirty and rusty. He was also using it as a welding vise and it has the odd bit of mig wire stuck to the jaws. I was going to (carefully) grind the mig wire off, disassemble the vise, wire wheel the rust off, oil it (linseet oil is common for this?), clean and grease the threads, and reassemble before gifting. 

Is this all the correct way to go about it? Would you rather do any of this yourself if you were getting it as a gift?

ALSO, there's a couple areas of the vise where you can see the forge welds from its construction (see pictures), and they looked a little suspect to me. While I have a welder and rods for cast iron, my understanding is that it's probably been like that for the last century or so and I SHOULD NOT attempt any sort of repair. Is this also correct? 

Thanks for any advice you have for me.